Player Updates

Bautista (knee) signed a minor-league contract with the Nationals on Wednesday, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reports.

Bautista linked back up with the Nationals after being released by Washington over the weekend. He's expected to miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. Prior to suffering the injury, the 25-year-old compiled a solid .366/.395/.463 line across 20 games with Triple-A Syracuse.

Bautista (knee) was released by Washington on Saturday, Dan Kolko of MASN Sports reports.

With Bautista out for the remainder of the 2018 season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament, the Nationals decided he was expendable, especially considering he was taking up a spot on the 40-man roster. In a corresponding move, Adam Eaton was reinstated from the 60-day DL (ankle) and Wander Suero was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse.

Bautista will miss the remainder of the 2018 season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament, lateral collateral ligament and meniscus during Thursday's game with Triple-A Syracuse, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reports.

Bautista will undergo the season-ending surgery Wednesday. Since the recovery timetable for these sort of knee injuries can vary slightly, there's a chance Bautista will not be ready for spring training in 2019, though a timetable should come into focus following next week's procedure. Bautista will finish the campaign with a .366/.395/.463 slash line over 20 games with Syracuse.

Bautista was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse on Monday, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.

Bautista will head back to the minors in order to open up a roster spot for reliever Shawn Kelley, who was activated from the disabled list in a corresponding move. The 25-year-old appeared in nine games during his time with the big club, though he logged just six at-bats and didn't record a hit. Bautista, who is hitting .429/.442/.524 with three stolen bases through 10 games with Syracuse, will continue to serve as organizational outfield depth.

Bautista was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse on Tuesday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

The 25-year-old is off to a hot start with the Chiefs, going 18-for-42 (.429) with three stolen bases in 10 games. Bautista will head to the big leagues to provide a spark in the outfield while Adam Eaton (ankle) and Brian Goodwin (wrist) are sidelined. No corresponding move has been announced yet.